All Songs Considered

4:45 pm

Thu October 25, 2012

Song Premiere: Red Baraat, 'Shruggy Ji'

I just saw Red Baraat play their new song, Shruggy Ji, at a brand new club in Washington, D.C. I don't think the incessant go-go rhythm fell on any deaf ears here in the birthplace of go-go. It certainly didn't for me, just blocks away from the record store where I worked, and where we'd blast go-go bands like Trouble Funk and Chuck Brown, back in the late '70s. For the Brooklyn nine-piece, this sound isn't a sharp right turn. Their mix of music already goes from Indian bhangra, (itself a mix of Punjabi music and western music) to New Orleans big band music. The common thread is party, community and spirit.

Since seeing Red Baraat at GlobalFest a couple of years ago, I tell everyone with a sense of adventure about this fabulous dance band. They've just announced a new album — also calledShruggy Ji — that'll be out on January 22, 2013. I'm so glad to have another chance to play Red Baraat.

We asked Sunny Jain to tells us a bit about the song Shruggy Ji:

"'Shruggy Ji' was inspired by the go-go music of D.C. that pianist Marc Cary turned me onto some years ago. When I first heard some tracks it reminded me of the swing of Bhangra with so many grooving intricate rhythms. We like to think of 'Shruggy Ji' as that shadow lurking next to us, waiting to take over when the night falls and move our body with no inhibitions."

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